Street-car.



G. H. SHOLES.

STREET GAR. I

APPLICATION FILED 1330.19, 1910.

1,003,378. Patented Sept. 12,1911.

IIVVENTOI? ATTORNEY CHARLES HENRY SHOLES, OF PORTLAND, OREGON.

STREET-CAR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed December 19, 1910.

Patented Sept. 12, 1911.

Serial No. 598,233.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES HENRY SHoLns, a citizen of the UnitedStates, and a resident of Portland, Multnomah county, State of Oregon,have invented a new and useful Improvement in Street-Cars, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention has for its object to obtain greater passenger carryingcapacity in street cars without increasing the size or cost of cars, andat the same time handle the greater number of passengers with increasedfacility of ingress and egress, and with a higher degree of comfort andpromptness than is possible with present methods during the emergenciesfor which this car is intended. Primarily, it is intended as anemergency car, to be used only during the rush hours morning and night,and on special occasions, such as ball games, circuses, etc., usuallylocated some distance from where the bulk of the traffic originates. Myinvention provides an interior arrangement of these special cars in suchwise as to place four passengers (approximately) in a semi-sittingposition where but two can sit according to the present method, namely:by providing the car with rigid upright supports made with backs andfronts, and placed so near together that a passenger taking his place inthe space or stalls between two of said uprights, and dropping hisweight upon his knees, finds himself supported in-a semi-sitting, fairlycomfortable and restful position, without any physical effort beingrequired to maintain such position.

To this end my invention comprises the special features illustrated inthe accompanying drawings and hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the drawings: Figure 1 represents a longitudinal vertical section ofthe car, the central portion of which has been broken away, and one endof such car being provided with my improvement, and the other endshowing the ordinary method of seating passengers; Fig. 2 is a plansection agreeing with the car shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an enlargedperspective detail; and Fig. 1 is an enlarged perspective detail showingthe manner in Which the concavities on the front and back of the uprightsupports may be cushioned in order to render them more comfortable.

The construction of the car in other respects than with regard to itsinterior arrangement may be of any convenient type. As shown in Fig. 1,a portion of the car,

a, is provided with seats, I), of the usual construction, which inpractice may be reserved for women and children. The re maining portionof the car is provided with upright supports 0. The upright supportsmay, however, extend throughout the length of the car to the exclusionof any seats. The upright supports, 0, are arranged one behind theother, and the front and back faces thereof are formed with horizontalconvex portions located at the top 0, the center 3?, and the bottom g;and said convex portions are spaced apart by intermediate horizontalconcavities cl,e, f, g. The central convex portions, 29, are adapted toserve as seats, and the concavities c, g, between the central and thebottom convex portions are adapted to constitute knee rests. The uprightsupports are so arranged as to support a person in a semi-sittingposition, as illustrated in Fig. 1.

The upright supports, 0, are supported on standards b, so as to leave anunobstructed room for the feet of the passenger, said standards, it,beingrigidly attached to the floor, and the upright supports, 0, beingrigidly attached to said standards and to the sides of the car. Theupright supports, 0, should be about three and one-half feet in height,so that the convex portions, 0, extending above the concavity fconstitute a partial support for the back of the passenger.

For a better grade of cars, the upright supports, 0, would beconstructed as illustrated in Fig. 1. It would consist of an uprightframe, 2', supported on standards it, and secured to the sides of thecar, just the same as described concerning the uprights 0. And on thefront and back faces of the frame, 71, would be upholstered convexcushions j, 70, Z, having horizontal cavities m, n, for the purposedescribed.

I claim:

1. In a car, upright supports arranged one behind the other and havingtheir front and back faces formed with horizontal convex portionslocated at the top, the center and the bottom; said convex portionsbeing spaced apart by intermediate horizontal concavities; the centralconvex portions being adapted to serve as seats, the concavities betweenthe central and the bottom convex portions being adapted to constituteknee rests, and the supports being arranged for supporting a person insemi-sitting position.

2. In a car, upright supports arranged one behind the other and havingtheir front and back faces formed With horizontal conveX upholsteredportions located at the top, the center and the bottom; said convexportions being spaced apart by intermediate horizontal concavities; thecentral convex stitute knee rests, and the supports being 15 arrangedfor supporting a person in semis1tt1ng poslt-lon.

CHARLES HENRY SHOLES.

I Witnesses:

CECIL LONG, O. O. MARTIN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

